Waiting
by SaltwaterJanuary
Summary: You can find beautiful things while waiting.


_Waiting_

"How long does it take?"

The sound of the rain pouring around them, through the heavy forest leaves, almost drowned out the young girl's question.

Except that his ears were large enough to catch it.

"It only takes a little bit, as long as you're patient…"

The other girl there with them fumed for a moment, until at last the words spilled out. "Big, we have no time for fishing! We have to find Sonic, and my quills are getting ruined in this rain!"

Big only hushed her by humming happily, but she felt largely annoyed.

"It's alright, Amy," Cream said, sitting by the bank and dangling her feet into the low water. "I think it's quite pretty here."

Amy crossed her arms. "Pretty, but nothing compared to Sonic…"

"Sometimes you need to take a break, don't you, Amy?" Big asked. He was still paying no mind to her, and this did not calm her.

"Not when I'm this close!"

"But stopping helps you think." He reeled the line in slightly.

"Yeah, about how badly I miss Sonic maybe." She rolled her eyes and with a sigh slumped to lean against a tree.

"But what will you do to stop him from running away?"

That was a pretty good point, but the fact that he made sense made her suspicious.

"I'll- I'll-"

"Miss Amy, maybe you _should_ take a break. You have been getting a little bit worked up lately." Cream looked over her own shoulder to look at her companion with worry.

Amy's shoulders drooped a bit, breathing in the damp air and trying to clear her mind. "I suppose you _are_ right. But I'm sure you two were just as obsessed when you were missing Chocola and Froggy!"

Cream and Big exchanged looks, but then Big focused solely on his fishing line.

"Well, maybe," Cream muttered.

Some birds that did not mind the rain began to chirp slowly, in some kind of wild forest song. The sound of rain itself had lowered until it had become barely above a drizzle.

"At least I won't be too wet now…" Amy murmured, mostly to herself.

Big pulled a fish out of the water and jumped excitedly. "I got one! I got one!"

Cream stood up and jumped with him. "Yay! Good job, Mr. Big!"

Amy had to admit, their enthusiasm was very encouraging to some degree. She almost wanted to join in, until another thought crossed her mind.

"Alright! You got it! Now, let's get going," she walked over to them and began pulling on Big's arm- the one that was not occupied with the fish.

"But wait, Amy. I wanted to show you how to fish." His large ears drooped and even the fish on the line dipped back into the water.

She was surprised at this sudden idea. "What do you mean by that?"

"I mean, don't you wanna know how to fish?"

She sighed again and brushed pebbles away with her boots. "I guess he's already gone anyway. I might as well I guess."

"Hooray!" Like that, the fish went flying overhead, due to his arm forgetting he was still holding a fishing pole.

It landed with a clank at Amy's feet. "Yuck! Get it away from me!" She picked up the rod's end and threw it back to his grasp without thinking twice. Luckily he made a good catch.

He laughed at her behavior. "Never do that is the first part."

"Duly noted."

* * *

Within a few moments, Big taught Amy how to properly hold the fishing rod and cast the line. Though the line casting itself took a few practice rounds.

Finally, the bait and hook were in the water.

"….how long does it take again?"

"It will go faster if you be patient."

She wondered if his words had any substance to them.

"Well, alright then. I guess this isn't so bad."

"It's really not," Cream remarked. She was now standing beside Amy and Big on the grassy part of the banks. Though at this point it was more mud than grass. "Besides, Miss Amy, all good things take a little patience."

She supposed that it was all supposed to be some kind of lesson to her- whether on purpose or not. Wait. Waiting all the time.

She sighed and wriggled the line again.

The rain, though it had stopped, sounded around them as the trees poured their excess over the leaves. Frogs were croaking somewhere in the water nearby, which was beginning to distract Big until he realized Froggy was already found. With the sun now reflecting off from the water, Amy had to admit that this part of nature was beautiful. Maybe it was worth it, a little bit.

She felt a tug on her line and she was surprised to feel a rush come over. It was a bit exciting…maybe.

She yanked on the rod a bit and listened to Big's instruction as she reeled.

As the fish came out of the water, its scales shone in the light and its tail flopped about frantically. It was a small fish , but she didn't care. It was her first catch, and that was good enough.

"I got one! It's about time!" she exclaimed to the others. Realizing they were right beside her, she felt a bit childish. Maybe it didn't matter.

When its tail veered towards her she nearly dropped the rod into the water. "Big, take this before I lose it."

He took it cheerfully and attempted to weigh it in his mind. Whatever it was, it was below average. No one minded though.

"Good job, miss Amy!" Cream cheered, high-fiving her friend enthusiastically.

"Oh, well, thank you." Amy turned and watched Big return it to the water. She wondered how often he did that. "That was a nice break, Big. Thank you."

He nodded and laughed, his typical response.

Maybe she was grateful after all.


End file.
